The privilege of mentoring

“When I was asked if I wanted to become a Windmill mentor, I said yes because being asked is a privilege. It’s a way for me to share my experiences with other immigrants on how I successfully navigated my career challenges.”

Before arriving in Canada in 2010, Liza worked in human resources (HR) in the Philippines for more than ten years. Knowing that becoming an HR professional in Canada would take time, she focused on a single HR function to better her chances. With Windmill’s support, she enrolled in a payroll compliance practitioner program.

When Liza received her certificate, she didn’t look for a job. She had two young kids to take care of while her husband started a business in the financial services sector. However, Liza used the skills and knowledge she gained to help her husband. In 2019, once her children had grown up, Liza’s career goal changed. Instead of looking for work in HR, she became an immigration consultant. Once again, Windmill was there to help her. In August 2020, Liza received her license and began working as an immigration consultant at the immigration consultancy company she co-founded two years ago.

Having had mentors before, Liza knows the importance of one who understands your career goals, especially in a new country. Liza didn’t hesitate when she was approached to become a Windmill mentor. She wanted to share her knowledge.

Liza was paired with a Windmill client looking to become a certified immigration consultant and build and grow his consultancy business. “I told Arshdeep that I could guide him on the entrepreneurial side of things. He can gain skills and knowledge from school and books, but to learn how to become an entrepreneur, you need someone’s guidance,” says Liza.

Because of Covid, Liza and Arshdeep haven’t had the opportunity to meet in person. However, the pandemic hasn’t stopped them from working together. During their virtual meetings, Liza is helping Arshdeep build his entrepreneurial skills. She is sharing valuable knowledge on the pitfalls of starting up a business, how to register it, the funding challenges and marketing needs.

Arshdeep is also volunteering at Liza’s immigration consultancy company filling out forms and doing research. This hands-on approach is providing firsthand experience on the work a consultant does. Gradually, he is gaining the skills and knowledge he needs to achieve his career goals.

Starting a business is hard, and Liza knows it. Because of that, she is determined to guide Arshdeep as much as she can. Liza wants him to benefit from what she has learned and the challenges she has successfully faced.

For her contributions to Windmill’s Mentorship Program, especially to her mentee, we want to recognize Liza as Windmill’s Mentor of the Month.